Tried And True At Carrie Cerino's

I have had a longstanding relationship with very few restaurants. Along with a handful of others from my childhood such as Parasson's, Marie's, and The Sub Station, Carrie Cerino's Ristorante in North Royalton also occupies one of those spaces. I first started going there after moving to Wadsworth during my eight grade year. My grandfather liked the food, service, and most importantly, the Manhattan's. Throughout high school and college, we would occasionally make the drive for some nice Italian food.

After college, Carrie Cerino's kind of fell off my radar. It wasn't particularly close to where I lived or worked and I could find Italian food as good closer to me. It seems I should have been playing closer attention as the then Executive Chef Dominic Cerino III had begun to make some marvelous changes to the menu. He began to add organic and heritage products as well as locally sourced ingredients. Apparently what was for so long etched into my mind as just another Italian restaurant had suddenly caught the attention of the foodie crowd in Cleveland.

It wasn't until my return to Carrie Cerino's in the fall of 2006 that I witnessed the transformation for myself. Chef Dominic had engineered the menu so that in addition to the traditional pasta with red or white sauce that would appeal to 80% of the clientèle, there were also menu items that were targeted at consumers who were looking for authentic Italian, but using higher quality ingredients.

Then, in early, 2008, it was announced that Chef Dominic had decided to leave Carrie Cerino's to pursue other interests and his brother Carmen, who had been involved with the restaurant but not necessarily in the kitchen, would take over the kitchen brigade and assume the role of Executive Chef. I don't know why, but suddenly it seemed as if the foodie crowd seemed uninterested in returning. I admit that I'm guilty of the same crime, but in my defense, because Carrie Cerino's was so far out of my way, I had usually gone because someone else asked me to join them for dinner.

So tonight, some 2 1/2 years after my last visit, I decided to go by myself and see how the food and menu had evolved. I went early on a Tuesday evening, figuring it would be the optimal time to show up unannounced and get a table; I was correct.

Carrie Cerino's was located at 8922 Ridge Road, North Royalton, OH 44133 and can be reached at 440-237-3434. Their website can be located here. There was a more than ample parking lot outside of the restaurant and lounge.

Here was what the front of the restaurant looked like from the road:


After entering through the main doors, I was greeted with the same long hallway I had walked down so many other times. As I approached the stand located at the entrance to the restaurant, the hostess greeted me, gathered up the menus and escorted me to my table in the back room, where there were only several other parties in various phases of their meals.

I started out by looking at the "Early Bird" menu, something I don't think I had ever had a chance to investigate before at Carrie Cerino's:


While the "Early Bird" menu was interesting because of the reduced prices, I was much more eager to check out the regular menu and see how much of what I remember still remained:




I spent a few minutes photographing and intently studying the menu. In what turned out to be a complete surprise, quite a few of the items that Chef Dominic had added were still on the menu. Ranging from the infamous Blue Egg Ravioli to the Berkshire pork and Copper River Salmon, sure enough it was all there. The only item that the menu seemed to be missing was the salumi board, which had been a collection of house-cured meats as well as a few of Armandino Batali's selections (yes, gentle reader, Armandino is Mario Batali's father).

After listening to my server describe the daily specials, I went about my task on deciding what to order. While the Copper River salmon was available and sounded delicious, at $42 for the King Salmon version, that was just a little too rich for my blood tonight. I ended up choosing one of the daily pasta specials, a Pasta Bolognese. In addition to my pasta, it also came with a choice of soup or salad and a choice between homemade Italian sausage or meatballs. Having forgotten the enormous amount of food you receive at Carrie Cerino's, I somewhat foolishly added a side of the Norcian Lentils, too.

Soon after placing my order, my server dropped off several loaves of homemade bread, one plain, and the other studded with sun-dried tomatoes and herbs. Here was a shot of my bread dish:


Seeing as this was my first taste of the food since 2008, I was impressed that the flavors and textures were exactly as I remembered them. I've never cared all that much for the sun-dried tomato version and sure enough, I didn't care for today's version either. That being said, it also hadn't changed. I paired some of the softened butter from the pats in a dish on the table with the "plain" version and was quite satisfied.

A few moments later, my server dropped my Italian Wedding soup off at the table:


Studded with a lone meatball, chunks of cooked chicken, micro-orbs of egg and long ribbons of greens, the soup was pretty good. I tried the broth first on its own and found it to be a bit salty for my taste, but when I paired the broth with the other ingredients in the soup, it helped to tame the saltiness of the broth. The meatball was tender and had been infused with various herbs which really added to the savoriness of the dish. While this wasn't the best Italian Wedding soup I've ever had (that honor goes to Vaccaro's Trattoria), it was still good.

Having finished my soup, I eagerly anticipated the main course. I didn't have to wait long. Here was a shot of the homemade Italian sausage with marinara sauce:


Besides being a rather hefty portion of sausage, it was grilled quite well and the casing had a nice snap to it. It was moist and tender and the addition of the acidity from the marinara sauce was a nice touch to help cut through the fattiness of the meat. As I began to chew the sausage, the comforting flavor of fennel seeds began to develop and lingered in my mouth after swallowing. The sausage, while not overly spicy, had just a tiny bit of heat that made it interesting.

Next up was my Pasta Bolognese:


The pasta, angelhair to be exact, was homemade and delicious. It had been cooked properly and then sauced two ways. As most good Italian cooks will tell you, the proper way to dress pasta is to cook it almost until done and then transfer it to a pot with the condimento, or sauce, to finish cooking. This allows the pasta to absorb the sauce. The pasta would then be plated, no additional sauce needed. Americans, however, like to have their pasta plain and topped with an inordinate amount of sauce. To me, pasta sauce is like salad dressing: less is more. Clearly from the color of the fresh angelhair, the pasta had been tossed with the sauce, but then after plating, additional sauce had been ladled on top.

Alright, fussing aside, how did it taste? Very, very good. The pasta was tender and cooked perfectly. The sauce, containing large pieces of cooked prosciutto, was creamy, tangy, and salty all at the same time. The only minor criticism besides being oversauced was that I would've loved to have seen a bit of parsley scattered on top, for a little bit of color contrast. At $14 for the soup, sausage, and pasta, this was a real bargain because I took home enough food for at least one additional meal.

Finally, my side of Norcian Lentils:


When Chef Dominic first added this dish to the menu, he cooked them the traditional way which made the lentils VERY al dente. Or as most of his customers would come to call it, a bit too crunchy. He did acquiesce and began cooking them through all the way and today's version mirrored that adjusted dish. The flavors were mostly there, although I missed the addition of the house-cured guanciale that gave Chef Dominic's version a nice spicy kick. The earthiness of the lentils was a nice contrast to the rest of my dinner.

Having eaten probably only a third of my meal, I asked my server to pack up the rest so I could eat it later. As always, the service at Carrie Cerino's was impeccable, but I wanted to actually give a special thanks to the young man who brought me my water and refilled my glass as well as cleared my table. Besides being efficient, he was also quite polite and interacted with me on several occasions during the meal, despite the fact that I wouldn't be tipping him directly. And, in case you were wondering, it wasn't just for me that he performed his tasks so well. He interacted this way with every patron he served.

To Chef Carmen Cerino's credit, the food tonight was as outstanding as it has always been. I was quite surprised to find so much of the menu still bearing the previous chef's signature, but also happy knowing that I can return again, hopefully in a much more timely fashion, and expect to find the same quality that I had tonight and in time's past. I recommend you check out both the traditional and not-so-traditional sides of Carrie Cerino's menu. There is something suitable for every taste.

Burger Contention At Whitey's Booze 'n Burgers

Any time I've ever come across a discussion, be it on the Internet or between actual people, about who makes the best hamburger, Whitey's is always thrown into the conversation. Over the years, I've gathered scant bits of information about them. They have really great chili. They are located in Richfield, Ohio. They make killer burgers. But that was the extent of my experience until I decided to make a post-shopping trip stop for a bite to eat one afternoon. Given the fact that it was nearly 3 PM on a Sunday when I stopped, I figured there wouldn't be an issue getting a table. I was right.

Whitey's Booze 'n Burgers was located at 3600 Brecksville Road (just a little bit north of the Brecksville/Wheatley intersection), Richfield, OH 44286 and can be reached at 330-659-3600. They also have a website located here. There was a more than ample parking lot and I easily found a spot and got out of my car.

Here was a shot of the front door:


There was a volleyball court in the back of the building and I discovered after walking in through the door above that there was an another door in the back between the court and the bar. As it was rainy and a bit nippy today, there wasn't any outside frolicking happening. From the moment I walked into the bar, I had to adjust my vision because of the darkness. I was greeted with a traditional bar at first and when I walked around the corner, additional restaurant-style seating was available.

Just inside the front door was a chalkboard wall menu laying out daily and monthly specials:


"What?" I thought to myself. "Fried eggs on a hamburger? I'm intrigued." Not sure whether this monthly special was an homage to Michael Symon's Lola burger or the Good Morning burger from The Simpson's television series, I thought about it all the way to my table. The other takeaway from this menu was that today was $0.35 chicken wing day and I'm always in the mood for some good (and even not so good) chicken wings.

After seating me, the hostess handed me the menu. On the front was the restaurant's logo:


The back contained an array of appetizers, salads, a few baked entrées, burgers, and sandwiches:


I only took a picture of the burger section because the lighting was pretty horrific, even having been sat at a table close to a window. I looked over the list of burgers and even though my server informed me that I could essentially build my own burger if I wanted to, the Eggs - elent burger from that chalkboard menu just kept nagging away at my brain. When I asked if the fried eggs were cooked all the way through or if the yolks were still runny, my server acknowledged the latter. Done! I was sold. I also found out that the burgers (and I'm guessing the sandwiches, too) were all a la carte. That was actually good news for me since I wanted to get a small order of their chicken wings as a side instead of potato chips or French fries.

After placing my order, I set about watching the large flatscreen television sets mounted on the walls and before I knew it, my chicken wings had arrived:


My server informed me when I was originally asking about the wings that all the wings are hand-breaded and served naked with the sauce of your choice served in a little cup on the side. Normally I prefer to have my chicken wings pre-sauced, but okay, I could roll with the punches. The chicken wings were excellent, probably some of the best I've had in the northeast Ohio area. The breading on the outside was crispy without being greasy, the tender wing meat was succulent and juicy and the wings just by themselves were nicely seasoned. The accompanying sauce, "Hot" as the menu described it, was the classic combination of hot sauce and butter. This was exactly the kind of sauce I remember cutting my wing "baby teeth" on back in college and I enjoyed every bit of it. If I go back to Whitey's for nothing else, their chicken wings would be enough.

Since I had told my server that this was my first visit to Whitey's, she brought out a small complimentary container of their fresh cut fries:


Even though I tend to shy away from fresh cut fries, these were actually pretty darn tasty. They had the rustic look and taste of a fresh cut fry without the annoying qualities that I dislike so much. They were crispy on the outside, creamy on the inside, and not the least bit greasy. I don't know that I would've ever ordered these on my own, so I have to give my server thanks for thinking I might like to try them. I will also say that these are best eaten hot and fresh. By the time I finished my meal and packed up the remainder, the fries were still good, but a tad more limp once they cooled off.

Having finished all of my chicken wings and some of my fries, the main event arrived, the burger:


The Eggs - elent burger consisted of a half-pound burger cooked to order, topped with ham, two fried eggs, and hollandaise sauce and crammed into a seeded bun. I had ordered mine medium and when I used the supplied steak knife to bisect my burgers, I was rewarded with this:


This was food porn at its best: oozy, runny egg yolks and the juicy, juicy cooked - perfectly - to - medium burger! When I took my first bite I was instantly rewarded with a warm, juicy, rich flavor that honestly, rivaled some of Michael Symon's legendary burgers at B Spot up in Woodmere. Eating just half of this burger was at least a three napkin event.

Here was another side shot, this one just a bit less cluttered:


I have to admit that Whitey's has a damn fine burger and I'm so glad that I stuck with the monthly special and didn't order a burger off the regular menu. Essentially Eggs Benedict on top of a burger, the flavors really competed well with each other. There were two small problems, however. First, as much as I was thoroughly enjoying how juicy this burger was, the juiciness also worked against it, too. The heel of the bun had been almost completely sogged out and it soon became apparent that any kind of structural integrity from the bottom half of the bun was gone. The crown was fine, but the heel ... eh, not so much.

The other issue for me was the seasoning, or lack thereof. When I tasted a bit of the burger meat just by itself, I found it grossly underseasoned. Granted, both the ham and the hollandaise were seasoned, but seasoned appropriately for itself. When you added in unsalted fried eggs and a burger patty, there was seasoning, yes, but it lacked a real punch. If Whitey's ever chooses to address those two issues, LOOK OUT! To my taste they will have achieved serious contender status for the best burger in northeast Ohio.

I took the other half of my burger along with my pickle and the remainder of my fresh cut fries home with me and planned to have a little snackfest a little later on that night. I should also mention that Whitey's was a cash/check only kind of establishment and no credit cards were accepted. Fortunately, there was an ATM available in the main hallway in case you didn't bring enough green with you to pay for your meal. Also, your server will present you with your check, but you actually go into the main bar area to pay your tab.

Having now eaten at some of the major heavy hitters in the burger arena in the Cleveland and Akron area, I have to admit that Whitey's is certainly not out of place when talking about great burgers. I'm going to have to make it point to return sometime soon (hopefully another Sunday so I can get more of their excellent chicken wings on the cheap) to try their other famous offering, the chili. I heartily recommend you look Whitey's up if you happen to be in the Richfield area (they are only fifteen minutes from the Fairlawn area, specifically Summit Mall). I think even with my minor quibbles about the seasoning and the soggy bun bottom, the burgers are quite good.

All Bite And No Bark At Hog Heaven

Some friends recently returned from a wedding in southern Ohio, from the New Philadelphia area. When I stopped by to visit with them, they told me how the wedding reception had been catered by a favorite local restaurant chain, Hog Heaven. They waxed on for quite some time about how wonderful and delicious the BBQ had been. Something odd about the name stuck in my head and then I remembered that there was a restaurant of that very same name on Cleveland Avenue on the north side of Canton. I pulled out my trusty smartphone and loaded up Google. A few key taps later, I had confirmed that the restaurant I was thinking of was the third and newest location in this local chain.

Based on my friends' glowing reviews of the food, I decided to take a closer look. While I didn't realize that there would be the advantage of lunch specials the day I decided to go, I'm glad I went when I did. The Canton location of Hog Heaven was located at 2730 Cleveland Avenue NW, Canton, OH 44709 and they can be reached at 330-458-0904. Their website lists menus, hours, and pretty much all the other information you'll need. Parking at the Canton location was in a lot next to the restaurant.

Here was a shot of the restaurant's roadside sign:


Once inside, I was greeted by one of the servers and quickly shown to my booth. The interior has a definite "wood" feel to it and most of the tables, chairs, and decorations were some type of stained and polyurethaned variant of what I suppose a Texas-style BBQ joint would look like. After being handed a menu, I began to look around for the best way to try the most flavors for the least amount of money.

Here was a shot of the menu:






Additionally, since I was there during lunch hours, there was an additional placard announcing daily lunch specials:


When I saw that the pulled pork sandwich was being offered with one side for only $3.99, I made a point to ask my server about it. It turns out that it was the same pulled pork sandwich listed on the menu for $8.99, but with only 1/4 pound of meat on the lunch version. While regular diners might have scoffed at only being offered a measly 1/4 pound of meat, this was perfect for someone like me. I got to try a smaller version of the original for a much smaller price.

When I asked if any of the sides were homemade, I was informed that the only homemade item was the "real mashed potatoes" (which was how the menu listed them). Everything else, my server said, already came prepared. I ended up going for the real mashed potatoes, but because my meal was so cheap, I decided to add the baked beans as well.

I also decided to order a starter. Hog Heaven, towing the same line that many mid-level family-oriented chain restaurants do, offers appetizers mostly in the $5-$9 range. Which, if you are eating with a group makes sense because that splits out into $2-$3 per person. But eating out by yourself, it discourages a lone diner because a) it's too high of a price to pay for an appetizer at a place like this and b) it's too much food for an appetizer. Nevertheless, my sudden lunch discount made me reconsider and I ordered the much spoken of and ballyhooed Prehistoric Hog Eggs. Essentially a hard-boiled egg that was batter dipped and then fried, it was eerily reminiscent of another version, Scotch eggs, that I've had in the past.

The Hog Eggs came out quickly enough paired with a traditional Buffalo chicken wing hot sauce:


The main aroma coming off this plate was due to the chicken wing sauce (which smelled vaguely similar to a Frank's Red Hot-based sauce) and the blend of seasonings sprinkled on top of the fried eggs. The most recognizable scent from the blend was oregano, which was quite nice. I cut into an egg to check out its internals:


I was shocked to discover nary a gray or green ring circumnavigating the egg yolk. Given the plethora of pre-made sides, I was a bit hesitant to assume that they hard-boiled the eggs on-site, but at the very least, the eggs that they were using were nicely cooked. The fried batter on the eggs was thin and crispy and eaten without the hot wing sauce, these were fairly tasty. I dipped a bite into the hot sauce and while the hot sauce was good, it overpowered the more delicate taste of the egg. Personally, I think I would prefer this wing sauce on, well, their chicken wings rather than these fried eggs.

After finishing up most of my Prehistoric Hog Eggs, my lunch finally arrived. Here was a shot of my pulled pork sandwich, the real mashed potatoes, and a side of the homemade barbecue sauce:


I was happy to see that the barbecue sauce came by default on the side. This meant I could add it to my taste.


The barbecue sauce was definitely tomato based and had a more acidic taste than most barbecue sauces in northeast Ohio. This I liked. Sadly, though, it was still a little too sweet for my liking. The pulled pork sandwich consisted of a buttered bun and a mound of pulled pork. I'm not quite sure why they buttered the bun as it hadn't been thrown onto a flattop to toast it. I tasted a bit of the pulled pork just by itself and while it was tender and quite juicy, I was amazed to find the complete absence of and really assertive flavors of its own. Even the smoke flavor from the smoker was barely present. I dug around through the meat to discover the complete absence of any bark. Bark, for those of you who aren't familiar with true barbecue, is the outer layer that develops on a pork shoulder that has been thoroughly covered with a dry rub. It is usually a combination of spices, sugar, and herbs and it darkens up during the smoking process.

When the fully-cooked pork is shredded, bit of the bark are incorporated into the pulled pork itself, so that every bite gets just a little bit of flavor from the dry rub. Some purists even insist that with a good enough dry rub, there really isn't even any need for "sauce." Well, as tender and juicy as this pork was, it definitely needed a flavor boost. I added a liberal amount of the supplied barbecue sauce and it definitely helped to give the sandwich some flavor.

I turned next to the real mashed potatoes. There was definitely more here going on that just boiled mashed potatoes as they had a very rich flavor that coated my tongue. Based on the slight tang I was tasting, I was guessing at a minimum butter, but possibly also sour cream or cream cheese, too. As smooth as they were, they still had small bits of potato in them just to remind you that they were homemade. They were seasoned quite nicely and I didn't have to make any adjustments.

Finally, I turned to my extra side, the baked beans:


These were decent enough and I would order them again, but there wasn't anything particularly special about them. They were a traditional ketchup and molasses/brown sugar-based baked bean and they were sauced nicely and the beans themselves were tender.

Having completed my meal, I now had two questions in my head. First, did the barbecue sauce contain high fructose corn syrup in it? Most commercially bottled sauces do and even the fine folks at Old Caroline Barbecue, despite the fact that they are a local chain operation, obviously have their sauces bottled by a big name company because each and every one of their sauces contains the stuff. When I asked for a pre-jarred bottle of their sauce, I was surprised to learn that the label didn't list the ingredients. While I know that they make the sauce from scratch, I figured if they sold it commercially bottled, they would have to list all of the ingredients. Interestingly, no. So, I asked my server directly what the sauce contained. She confirmed with the kitchen that no corn syrup of any kind was used in the sauce.

My second question was where the pulled pork came from. She quickly answered that all of the pork, brisket, and other smoked items were done at the flagship store in New Philadelphia and then transferred to the other stores. Knowing how well pulled pork holds well in the refrigerator, her answer didn't surprise me. I think I may just have to visit the original location sometime and check out their smoking rig for myself.

In the end, I think that the Hog Heaven Canton location served up a decent-enough meal. Was it the best barbecue I've ever had? No, but it was decent enough for northern Ohio. While the Hog Eggs were an interesting appetizer, the pulled pork sandwich was definitely tender and juicy. The lack of assertive flavor just didn't make my mouth water as much as I thought it should. The sides were decent and the overall experience was enjoyable. I don't know that I'd be taking someone well-versed in barbecue here to impress them, but for your average Ohioan, it's worth the trip.

A Final Meal At The Baricell Inn

I write this blog post with bittersweet sentiments. As I was enjoying my visit with my out-of-town friend Mike last weekend, he read aloud from the Cleveland Plain Dealer that a well established Little Italy restaurant, the Baricelli Inn, would be closing its doors on Saturday, July 10th after twenty-five years in operation. Chef and owner Paul Minnillo was quoted in the CPD article as saying that, "After 25 years in business, I think it's just time to close" and "It's just very difficult to succeed in that category today. People just don't eat that way -- lots of courses, and hours at the table -- anymore."

And while I would've agreed with his sentiment perhaps ten years ago, based on my previous visit to the Baricelli last summer, I actually felt like they had evolved into a more modern restaurant. The menu prices were reasonable for the level of food being prepared and served to diners. Of course, if one went nuts on the wine list, the final bill could be expensive, but with most entrées priced in the mid $20's, while it wasn't an every day kind of place, it was certainly in line with other more recent Cleveland upscale eateries like Lola Bistro, Crop Bistro, Parallax, and Moxie. That being said, the last time I had dinner there, the restaurant was eerily empty for a Friday night and I suspect that Chef Minnillo wanted to not only reinvent the menu, but at someplace new that wouldn't weigh him down with tradition that the Baricelli had established for itself.

Word of the closing spread quickly amongst the foodie community and within hours, a group of us decided that we would plan on enjoying one final meal before the doors closed on the 10th. I wouldn't normally write about a restaurant that is no longer open, but in this particular case, I decided to document my last meal at the Baricelli Inn as an homage to the memories I've had there over the past twenty years. Tonight, July 8th, was the date of our gathering and as we arrived, I think more than one of us was filled with happiness, sadness, and nervousness over what was about to transpire.

Before I share tonight's meal with you, gentle reader, I wanted to regale you with one of my favorite Baricelli Inn stories. My first real job out of college was with the big consulting firm Ernst & Young. Based out of the Cleveland office, those were the heady pre-dotcom boom days where staff consultants were billed out at $125+ per hour. Budgets were fairly large back then and most expense reports were approved with little questioning. Of course, if you traveled for business, you could expense dinner. A little known fact, however, was that if you worked ten or more hours in a given day at your home office, you could also expense dinner. Having been itching to try the Baricelli Inn since I had learned of its existence when starting at Case Western, at the end of a particularly long ten hour Monday, an idea popped into my head. I was already dressed in a suit for work. I could expense a meal and no receipt was required for meals under $75. I could probably get a last minute reservation considering Monday was probably not a busy night for the restaurant.

I called and scored a reservation for 7 PM. My next thought was that I didn't want to experience this by myself. So, I called up my friend Chris (the one who now lives in Scranton, PA that I've written about before) and had the following conversation:

"Have you eaten yet?"
"No. Why?"
"I have some good news and some bad news."
"Okay. What's the good news?"
"We have reservations at the Baricelli Inn in an hour."
"Sweet! What's the bad news?"
"You're going to have to put on a tie and jacket."

Chris, like me, had never had the opportunity to eat at the restaurant either and quickly agreed to my terms. We walked to the restaurant and were promptly seated and shown our menus. I had never ordered with abandon before, not really caring about how much everything would add up to in the end. We went through appetizers, salads, entrées, desserts, two bottles of wine, and of course, cigars and port. Needless to say, we appeared to be celebrating like rock stars. At one point during the meal, I had said the line, "I can't believe its been over a year now," just as the waiter arrived with our appetizers. Now, I was actually referring to something completely different, but I saw him pause for only the briefest of moments as he registered the notion that Chris and I were here to celebrate our anniversary. He further commented when Chris and I ordered cigars and glasses of port at the end of our meal, "Boy, you guys sure know how to celebrate!" Again, there was that slight twinkle in his eye. Chris, whose gaydar was about as finely tuned as a used Yugo, completely missed the references.

When I finally got the check, I was just a little shocked that with tip and tax, the bill came to $366. I will concede that wine, cigars, and port made up more than half of the bill. In the end, it took me an additional four days of working 10+ hours per day to expense the entire dinner ($75 per day, remember?). I actually held on to that receipt for years, a reminder of my introductory meal at a restaurant of that caliber.

As we walked out into the cool night air still smoking our stogies, I decided to revisit the waiter's earlier comments:

"So, um, you DO realize that the waiter thought we were a couple, right?"
"WHAT?!"
"Yeah, remember the comment I made about me not believing it's already been a year? The waiter overheard me saying that as he delivered the appetizers. And his comment at the end of the meal about us going all out to celebrate? Oh, yeah, he totally had us pegged as a couple in a committed relationship."
"But that's not what we were even talking about! Wait. We're not a couple, are we?"

I thought about torturing him for a little bit considering he had just gotten a free (and very expensive) meal, but decided to let him off the hook with a simple, "Um, no."

Ah, good times, good times. So now let's talk about some of the good times I had with dinner tonight.

After being shown to the table and having our server introduce himself to us, we were left to peruse the freshly printed menus for today's dinner service:



I was hoping to score an order of the gnudi (the dish which sent my previous dining companions into uncontrolled fits of laughter), but sadly, the dish was nowhere to be found on the menu and our server confirmed that there were no additional daily specials to consider. While we sat and pondered what to order for this last glorious meal, our drink orders arrived at the table.

Here was my glass of iced tea:


Given how hot it has been over the last week, this was an exceptionally welcome sight and I took a few sips from the frigid liquid to quench my thirst. Along with our round of drinks came the bread service. First up was a dish of extra virgin olive oil:


And a single piece of bread for each diner:


The bread was quite good. It was filled with feta cheese chunks and spicy red pepper flakes. While tasty on its own, it was even better when dipped into the olive oil. The only bad part about tonight's bread service was that no additional bread was offered to guests after the first piece had been eaten. I suppose we could've asked for additional bread, but the gentleman walking around with the bread basket seemed to be few and far between.

Because the Baricelli offers half-sized portions of pasta and given that I had only eaten a small bowl of chicken noodle soup at lunch today, I decided to order an appetizer, a small pasta, and an entrée. It sounds like a lot of food, and normally I wouldn't order that much, but I was quite hungry and considering that this was the last time I would be able to order from their menu, I decided to push the envelop a bit.

While there were several good looking items from the appetizer portion of the menu, when I saw that they were offering bufala mozzarella, I knew I wouldn't be able to resist. Here was a shot of my appetizer when it arrived at the table:


Almost identical to a insalata caprese, the big difference here was that the tomatoes had been replaced with roasted strips of red bell pepper. Dressed with a chiffonade of fresh basil and some extra virgin olive oil, this was heaven on a plate. The difference between this mozzarella and fresh mozzarella you can get in most supermarkets today was that this version was made from Water Buffalo milk and not cow's milk. The texture and taste of the bufala mozzarella was extremely soft and creamy and it almost melted in my mouth. It very much reminded me of the burrata I had enjoyed the week prior at Chinato, but it wasn't quite as creamy. Regardless, I enjoyed every bite, from first to last.

For my petite pasta course I decided to go with the mushroom risotto with shaved fennel salad:


As soon as my server set this down in front of me, the heady aroma of white truffle oil wafted up from the plate and tickled my nose. While the rice was cooked perfectly, there was a surprising lack of creaminess that one normally associates with a risotto. If this risotto had been finished with butter or freshly grated Parmesan cheese, it was a minimal amount. That being said, the flavor was unctuous and earthy, representative of the fact that there were several varieties of wild mushrooms on this plate. The dressed fennel and shallot salad on top offered a nice bit of acid to help cut through the richness of the mushrooms. This was yet another solid dish from the kitchen.

Looking over the list of entrées, I let my heart really speak to what it craved: steak. Here was a shot of the Flat Iron Steak with Mushroom Frittata:


Dressing the plate was a porcini aioli and accompany my entrée tonight was some sautéed spinach and crispy onion straws. Here was a close-up of the steak:


Cooked to the perfect medium-rare that I requested it, the steak was warm and juicy and cut easily with the provided serrated knife. I dipped each bite into a little bit of the porcini aioli and was rewarded with a deeper, richer umami flavor. I've often prepared flank steak before by doing a dry rub that contained ground up dried porcini mushrooms and this flavor was reminiscent of that preparation.

Not to be outdone, at the center of the dish was an unmolded timbale of mushroom frittata:


I knew that this has been properly cooked as the eggs were tender without being too wobbly. While it reinforced the mushroom flavor in the aioli, it was also different enough in flavor that it provided my taste buds a break from the richness of the beef. The sautéed spinach the frittata rested on had a bright, clean spinach flavor and while I grew up as a child who hated this somewhat bitter vegetable, I thoroughly enjoyed tonight's version.

One of my dinner companions who also happened to order the Flat Iron Steak wanted something a little different as a side and when the server told him about the Parmesan French Fries, he quickly agreed:


He was generous enough to share his side and I have to say that these were quite tasty. While these weren't the crispy potato sticks that I normally desire, the flavor from the Parmesan and herbs sprinkled on top more than made up for their lack of crispness.

After such a heavy meal, I wasn't sure I wanted to do dessert, too. But, knowing that this would be my last chance to ever do so again, I opted to push past the slight discomfort. While the dessert menu contained cheeses, ports, dessert wines, and other such accoutrements, I decided to just take a picture of the dessert portion of the menu:


Yes, the choices were pretty limited, but given that they were closing in just two days, I wasn't surprised to see only four desserts listed. The sorbet duo for the event, pineapple and raspberry, weren't really calling my name, so that dessert choice was out. I was feeling in a chocolate mood, so I opted for the warm espresso fudge brownie with homemade vanilla ice cream. Here was what I received shortly after ordering:


First the good. The ice cream and fudge sauce were outstanding. I would've gladly eaten a hot fudge sundae composed of just those two items. The espresso fudge brownie was also nicely moist and warm. However, I didn't particularly taste any of the espresso flavor in the brownie and it had an off-putting grainy texture, almost as if the sugar hadn't fully dissolved in the batter before being baked. Additionally, it was cloyingly sweet. I realize that dessert is supposed to be sweet, but as with all courses, it should also have balance. All that said, it wasn't a bad dessert; it just wasn't up to the level of the rest of the meal.

Our epicurean journey now complete, we paid our respective checks, collected our personal effects, and strolled out into the still nearly 90 degree Fahrenheit evening air. While I am sad to see this Cleveland eatery fade into memory, I am happy to have had the opportunity to have just one more fabulous meal before they shuttered the windows and locked the doors. For those who are fans of Paul Minnillo's cooking, he is planning on partnering with Christopher Di Lisi in order to open up a more affordable restaurant in Moreland Hills called Flour. I'll be the first to admit that I'm curious what kind of menu he will be presenting to replace the high-end cuisine he served for twenty-five years at The Baricelli. From what I've heard, it should be opening up in the fall of 2010.

While I will certainly miss the food and service at the Baricelli, I will always have my wonderful memories of dinners past to entertain and delight me for years to come.